"Don't Be Deceived by COVID Loan Ads Like 'KB Gukmin Support Center'"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyo-jin] On the 26th, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) issued a consumer alert level "Caution" regarding illegal loan advertisements taking advantage of the confusion caused by the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The FSS stated, "Recently, illegal loan advertisements impersonating public institutions such as the 'Integrated Support Center for People with Low Income' and the 'National Happiness Fund,' or disguised as COVID-19 support loans, have surged targeting low-income people urgently needing funds due to COVID-19 and other reasons," urging consumers to be cautious.

From the beginning of this year until the 24th, consultations on illegal private loans reported to the FSS Illegal Private Finance Reporting Center reached about 29,200 cases, a 43.6% increase compared to the same period last year.

Illegal loan operators mainly use names and logos similar to the Integrated Support Center for People with Low Income's Saessal Loan and the National Happiness Fund on Facebook. They post the Taegeukgi (Korean national flag) or cleverly alter government agency logos to make it appear as if the loans are legitimate government loans.

Illegal loan companies exploiting COVID-19 send loan advertisements disguised as if sent by regulated financial institutions such as the 'KB National Support Center.'

Based on this, they lure consumers with phrases like "Let's overcome together! COVID-19," "COVID-19 Integrated Debt Consolidation Loan," and "Up to 230 million KRW fixed interest rate 2.8%."

Public institutions do not offer financial product loans or advertisements via smartphone applications or text messages, so caution is advised.

The FSS warned that text messages labeled as "COVID-19 loans" sent from senders with names similar to regulated banks, requesting personal information and prompting app installations, are loan scams and should not be responded to.

Examples of Illegal Loan Advertisements (Provided by the Financial Supervisory Service)

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.